Another One to Hold
by Dratier
Summary: Recently-widowed Serena returns to her home town in an attempt at a new start to her life. What she discovers is that she is not the only thing that has changed over the years. When everything she's ever known threatens to come crashing down, will she be strong enough to stand tall? Or will she lose herself entirely? Rated T for language and adult themes. Please R&R. -Chapter 6 up
1. Chapter One

Thank you for taking your time to read this story. I had in the past written a story titled "Going Home" which I never completed. This story is a sort-of rewrite of that previous fiction. If you enjoy this story, please follow and comment. Thank you.

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Chapter One

The time was seven past three on the afternoon. It was the 16th of June during the time of the day that the sun should have been blinding, and the air should have been completing its transition from uncomfortable yet manageable warm to blazing hot. Instead, it was dark, and cold, and most importantly, wet. There was no prediction of rain that day. In fact, the weekend was being hyped as being one of the hottest on record. How many people's plans had that weatherman ruined?

There was a still, yet constant chill in the air. Those who felt it were reminded of the feeling one gets when he or she steps into the cold ocean, when the sudden cold hits with a force that takes ones breath away. Of course, that feeling eventually subsided as warmth began to return to the body. On that day, the air seemed to take away a person's very soul―one's very existence―and threatened to never let it go.

Everybody wore black. On any other spring day, there might had been a whole palette of colors. On any other day, especially in June, there may had been little to no black at all, most of those clothes locked away for when the gloomy months returned in November.

There might had been thirty people, or perhaps even forty. From afar, the group of people looked like a complete absence of light. It looked as if a piece of a jigsaw puzzle was missing, or perhaps it appeared as if a black hole had opened, threatening to swallow anything or anyone that dared to be close enough. When close enough to the crowd, the people's faces could be seen. All the faces looked void of any emotion. That damned chill had gotten to them all.

At the front of the group was a young girl, also wearing black. Her blonde hair, which had at one point had been very long, fell straight down her back, stopping just past her shoulders. Her eyes, which had always been the most beautiful shade of blue, now appeared gray and old. They were eyes that would have looked best on a person who had lived a long, troubled life; not on a young ire under the age of 30. Her skin was pale to the point that she almost appeared transparent, as if she might have vanished at any moment.

She, along with everybody else, were standing around a freshly-dug grave, though only the concrete liner inside was visible, though only partially, under the simple black casket which sat over it on bronze runners. The ground around it was carpeted in AstroTurf, which would had stood out a brilliant yet obnoxious green on any normal day. That day it looked muted, just like everything else, as if God had placed a sepia filter over the world.

Serena felt the hand around her arm squeeze, causing her to turn her head and remove her eyes from the final resting place of her husband for the first time since arriving. Her friends stood with her. The same friends she had known since elementary school. They had been with her since she returned to her home town for the funeral, the service of which was held in the same church she had married him, almost a year ago to the day.

Serena always knew him as an honest man. A good man. He worked hard and provided for the two of them the best he could. When he got a job offer in Maryland which he couldn't refuse, he promised her a great life for the two of them. She had been happy in New York. They didn't have much, but what they had was great. Even so, she supported him. Serena chose to leave all she knew behind because she loved him. Perhaps if she had said no, then that drunk driver wouldn't had hit him while he was walking to the store and dragged him over 100 feet.

Serena reviewed the facts in her head over and over again, and every time reached the same conclusion: if she said no, he would still be alive. The squeeze Serena felt on her arm was from Raye, one of Serena's oldest friends as well as her sister-in-law. Raye gave her a reassuring smile and for the first time since his death, Serena felt her eyes sting with the promise of tears.

Serena had gotten the news only nights earlier. There had been a knock on her door and when she saw the police officer standing at her doorstep, she knew. Her husband was away often on business and when he was gone, he always called her at the same time every night. He was one of the most organized and punctual people she knew, and even him calling a few minutes after was extremely rare. Not calling at all was completely unheard of.

After finding out about her husband, Serena didn't cry. Not a single tear. Even when her friends arrived in almost record time, all crying themselves for her, she didn't shed a tear. She felt horrible about herself, and even disgusted at herself for not crying. Even at the funeral, as his own sister remained strong for her, Serena's eyes didn't as much as well up.

Raye's squeeze was followed by a squeeze on her other arm. It was Mina, another one of Serena's oldest friends. Her belly swelled with new life. Serena felt guilty that the funeral was the time she got to see her since receiving the news, and that she couldn't be more excited for her. Unlike Raye, Mina could not stop the tears from falling down her face.

Behind Serena stood Amy and Lisa, both with a hand firmly placed on either of her shoulders. She couldn't see them, but Serena was sure they were crying as well. Even though Raye was not crying, Serena could tell that her strength was hanging by a thread.

"Now let's bow our heads in silent prayer," the funeral director said. It took Serena a moment to register the words and react. Though the man asked for silence, there was a symphony of sniffling and light cries. The slight drizzle that had been going on since the beginning of the service began to grow in intensity until the sounds of crying were replaced by the steady sound of rain.

Things had wrapped up fairly quickly after the rain intensified. Everybody lined up at the end to place a rose on to the top of the casket, beginning with Serena. She had stared at the plain black box that held her husband. This was it: the final goodbye. As she placed the white rose on top of the casket, she hoped that the tears would come―that the floodgates would open and all the pent up emotions from the last several days would be released.

Not a single tear was shed.

After the funeral had ended, everybody said their goodbyes to Serena. She had lost track of the amount of times she heard, "sorry" and "he's in a better place now". Serena almost wanted to laugh at the latter. 'At least _he's_ in a better place' _,_ she thought. Everybody else that was left at the end would be going to Raye's house. If Serena had a choice, she would had just gone back home to Maryland and went to sleep indefinitely.

"We need to go," Raye said as she placed her arm around Serena's shoulders. Serena noticed that at some point she must had gone off and cried, since her eyes were red and swollen―the eyes of somebody who had spent the last ten minutes crying. Serena nodded, but didn't say a word.

Amy, Mina and Lisa has already gone ahead to set up at Raye's house. Raye guided Serena to the car and the two sat inside for several moments without speaking. Serena knew it was what they called awkward silence. Usually that was when two people both wanted to talk but couldn't find any words to say. In this situation, Serena didn't _want_ to talk to anybody. She wanted to be left alone. Raye opened her mouth to say something. She even let a sound escape her lips, but then she stopped herself. There was nothing to say. Instead, Raye started the car and began to drive.

The drive to Raye's house was silent, though Serena didn't remember any of it. In fact, she had difficulty recalling much of the day, or the whole week for that matter. Her memories of the day's events were reduced to only one image: the concrete grave liner, the plain black casket, and that God damned AstroTurf.

Upon entering Raye's house―a small, but comfortable ranch―Serena's senses were overloaded with the aromas of Lita's cooking. Set up in the dining room were half trays of various Italian dishes. Eggplant Rollatini, Chicken Francese, Penne alla Vodka, and many others were sitting in steaming chafing dishes. Every food item was one of Serena's favorites, and with her overwhelming grief, she could feel her mouth salivating.

The people who were gathered around the room―sharing stories, telling jokes―stopped what they were doing and looked up as Serena entered, like she were a teacher who arrived to a class of children. In an instant, it was silent. That awkward silence again.

'Should I say something? Give a speech? Put on a show?' Those thoughts all ran through Serena's head at once.

"Thank you for coming everybody," Raye said, much to Serena's relief. "You don't know how much this means to me. To us." She diverted her eyes to Serena, who gulped and opened her mouth to say something. Anything. No sound came out.

"Now come on," Raye continued. "You all know my brother wouldn't want us all being down like this. Let's remember how good of a guy he was and make sure to have an extra drink for him. Okay?" Raye smiled. It was mostly forced, but was effective, as the few chuckles and nodding of heads showed.

A handsome man with dirty blonde hair held up his glass of beer. His name was Andrew, one of Serena's husband's oldest friends. Before Serena began dating her husband, she and Andrew had gone on a few dates, but it didn't go far, since Andrew had chosen to go away to college. He was supportive when her late husband became interested in dating her.

"I'll drink to that," Andrew said. Everybody who had a drink held it up in agreement. Those who did not held up their hands anyway, imaginary glasses held high. Serena smiled. It was a sad smile, but it was genuine.

"Thanks everybody," Serena said, finally breaking her silence.

"When's the baby due?" Serena asked around a mouthful of a mix of Penne alla Vodka and Chicken Francese. Serena hadn't entered the house with much of an appetite, but once she was amongst her friends, it wasn't long before she was on her third plate.

Mina rubbed her swollen belly, "August second. My God, I can't believe it's so soon." Serena wanted to ask about the father, but decided to save it for another time. Raye had asked Serena to not bring it up. She told Serena that Mina's boyfriend ran off once he found out she was pregnant.

"He better never come crawling back," Raye had said, "because if I saw that guy, I would castrate him." Serena knew that she probably wasn't kidding.

"I can't believe we're all going to be aunts," Lita chimed in from across the table that currently sat the four lifelong friends. Her comment was answered with giggling from the other girls, including Serena.

Serena poured herself another glass of Sauvignon Blanc, her third in the last hour. Amy gave a worried look, but Raye shook her head at the girl. Serena seldom drank, and when she did, one was usually enough to knock her on to her ass. There were a small handful of times that she made it to a second glass. Once ever did her friends witness her drink the dreaded third glass of wine.

Serena had at one time gotten into a huge argument with her husband. It had gotten so bad that she took the first plane to New York. That night, as she spilled her frustrations to her friends, she had the third glass of wine. The rest of that night, as well as most of the next day, was spent in the bathroom, kneeling over the toilet. Serena's friends promised each other to never allow Serena to drink that much again.

Amy understood what Raye was trying to tell her. Obviously, that night was a completely different circumstance. 'Sorry your husband died, but you better lay off the booze.' That definitely wasn't happening. Serena might had very well gotten sick, and they had to be there to hold her hair the next morning. At that moment, it was the most they could do for her.

Serena took a large gulp of her wine and sighed.

"I gotta shank you guys," Serena said. "Like really." Amy placed her arm on to Serena's shoulder.

"You never need to thank us. We'll always be there for you," Amy said with a warm smile, her blue eyes brimming with tears. The other girls nodded in agreement, tears swelling in their own eyes.

"You're more than our friend," Amy continued. "When you hurt, we hurt too."

"That's right," Mina said, reaching across the table to take Serena's hands. "We'll always be there for you. If you can't walk, we'll carry you. I don't know if that makes sense, but I think you get what I mean." Serena nodded, feeling her eyes begin to droop.

"I shink I need to sleep," Serena's voice slurred. She finished the last of her wine in one gulp and—rather unsteadily—stood up. Amy jumped up immediately with her and took her arm, ready to support Serena if she were to fall.

"I'm okay, really," Serena said in an attempt to reassure Amy. Amy, though not totally convinced, released her grip on Serena's arm.

"See?" Serena asked the girls. "I'm perfectly fine." She turned on her heels, almost comically, and took one step, then another. On her third step, she tripped over her feet and fell forward. At once, all of her friends jumped forward, but it was too late.

Serena fell uncontrollably, and winced in anticipation of a nasty spill. It never came. Instead of hitting the hard, cold floor, she felt herself lands against something warm and oddly familiar, followed by a person's arms wrapping around her body. Serena opened her eyes in shock, the adrenaline rushing through her body removing any feeling of intoxication from the wine.

"Serena?" a man's voice half asked, half exclaimed. Serena steadied herself and looked up at her savior.

"D-Darien?" Serena asked, or rather shot. His dark blue eyes, which usually looked at her mockingly or humorously, were filled with an emotion she had only seen in his eyes once before: concern.

"Serena," Darien calmly said this time. "I'm so, so sorry, Serena." Darien wrapped Serena in his arms tightly, much to her surprise. Then something happened; something she couldn't understand at the time.

Serena didn't know if it was the wine, or perhaps the adrenaline that was still flowing through her veins, but she gave herself up into her embrace. Then the strangest thing happened. For the first time since she received the terrible news just days before, she cried.

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That's it for the first chapter. I know that it's a little depressing, but I promise that it will (perhaps?) get a little happier from here. If you enjoyed it, please let me know. Thank you.


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two  
Picking Up the Pieces

"We are making our final approach to John F. Kennedy. Please remain seated until we reach a complete stop. Thank you for choosing Jet Blue."

The pilot's words reverbed around the cabin of the Embraer 190. Serena stared outside the window at the passing river and industrial buildings that would soon give way to the runway of JFK airport. A slight smile was on her face, which along with the soft light pouring in through the small window, made her glow almost angelically.

It had been six months since her husband's tragic passing. After the funeral was over, she went back to Maryland, much to the dissatisfaction of Raye and the other girls. Serena had a house though. It was _their_ house; the one they built together. Serena did not want to see it go. Not yet.

So she gave it a shot. At first, she felt okay. It wasn't like he was home much anyway, with all the travel associated with his job. The biggest problem Serena faced was she did not work herself, and as the days turned into weeks and the weeks into months, she had begun to get stir crazy. It was that, along with the continued pressure from her friends, which finally convinced her that it was time to move on. Serena put the house up for sale and sent her belongings ahead to New York.

It was as she was making her final descent from Maryland that she knew it was the last time she would ever be making that trip. Perhaps it was that thought that brought the smile to her face, or maybe it was the anticipation of her new life, which was ironically also her old life.

After leaving the terminal, she headed straight to the entrance of the airport. Upon reaching the lobby, she gasped and almost cried. Waiting for her were Amy, Raye and Lita; the three of them holding up a large banner-like sign that read 'WELCOME HOME SERENA.'

"Everybody," Serena called as she ran over to her friends. They all embraced her in a group hug, the banner dropped to the floor and forgotten for the moment. They broke the embrace after several moments, their cheeks damp with tears in lieu of their smiling faces.

"Where's Mina?" Serena asked. Raye's expression grew dark. "I've been so excited to see baby Connor," she continued.

"She'll be around later," Raye said. "She told me to tell you that she's sorry that she couldn't make it. Baby problems, I guess." Raye's face softened somewhat, but still held a stern expression. Serena felt somewhat disappointed, but understood completely. She didn't notice Raye's change of expression, nor did she notice the same looks on the other girls' faces.

"The car is still waiting," Amy said, "so we should probably go before the driver gets annoyed."

"Oh let him," Lita shot back. "His meter's running whether we're there or not." The girls laughed.

"But she's right," Lita continued. "Not because he'll get mad, but because we made dinner reservations."

"But all my stuff is coming to Raye's house," Serena tried to object.

"Oh don't worry about that," Raye said with a wink. "Chad'll take care of it." Serena looked concerned.

"I don't know," Serena replied. "It's a lot of stuff." Raye held up her hand in a 'stop' motion and shook her head, grinning.

"That lazy bum's been packing on a few pounds," she said. "Trust me, he needs the exercise." They all laughed until tears were rolling down their faces.

So where are we going?" Serena asked, feeling the all-too-familiar sensation of her stomach churning.

"That, my little lady, is a surprise," Raye said with a wink. They all laughed again.

The surprise, if Serena hadn't already figured it out—or more like pried it out of Amy—was a small BBQ place on Long Island, near Raye's house. It just so happened that it was one of Serena's all-time-favorite restaurants. The girls reserved a small table in the back, where they could hear each other speak over the sounds of a live band that was playing Blues on the stage.

Once they sat, a young and pretty waitress with short blonde hair walked over to them.

"Can I get you ladies anything to drink?" the server asked in a cheerful, though almost annoying baby-like voice. Serena winced at the use of the word 'ladies'. 28 wasn't _that_ old, right?

"I'll have a Blue Moon with orange," Lita was the first to order. She was never much of a beer drinker, but whenever she had barbeque food, it was her go-to drink.

"Do you have Sauvignon Blanc?" Serena asked, though she already knew the answer.

"No. Only whites we have are Pinot and Chardonnay." Actually, her baby voice was _really_ annoying. Serena had wondered if there was any way that could had been her real voice.

"I guess the Pinot then. Oh, and with a side of ice." Serena noticed that the server was not writing anything down and made a bet to herself that she would not be receiving her side of ice.

"Kettle One and diet for me," Raye said, ordering her usual, albeit with Diet Coke instead of regular. Serena figured that Raye must had been on a "diet" again and chuckled audibly. She was answered with a kick in the shin from under the table.

"Ow! Raye!" Serena exclaimed in pain. Raye feigned innocence.

"And for you?" the server asked Amy.

"I'll just have a water, thank you." The other girls groaned.

"Come on, Amy," Lita said. "Live a little!"

"O-okay," Amy responded nervously. "I'll have a White Wine Spritzer, along with the water." Lita dropped her head into the palm of her hand.

"Shouldn't we order for Mina?" Serena asked. "She's meeting us here for dinner, right?" The table grew silent. That awkward silence again.

"Serena, we…" Amy started, but was almost immediately cut short by Raye.

"Yeah about that," Raye said. "Mina texted me before that Connor's not feeling too good, so she's going to stay home tonight."

Oh," Serena said, somewhat confused but mostly disappointed. "Well, I'll have plenty of time to see her, I guess."

"So will that be all then?" the server asked in her baby voice.

"Yes, thank you," Raye said, dismissing her. There was another moment of silence at the table, like none of them knew what to say. Finally, Lita broke it.

"So how does it feel to finally be back for good?" Lita asked.

"It still hasn't sunk in yet, you know?" Serena said. "Like, I'm happy. Happier than I think I've felt in a long time. Still, it's kinda sad, like it's actually over. It really hasn't sunk it yet."

"Just because you left Maryland doesn't mean that you have to forget about him," Amy said. Serena shook her head.

"Oh, I know," she said. "But it's kind of scary. I mean, it's only been what? Six Months? Yet when I close my eyes, it's like I can't even remember what he looks like. I feel horrible."

"Don't" Amy said. It is just your mind's way of coping with everything that has happened. You didn't do anything wrong." Serena laughed while wiping a single tear from her eye.

"I can always count on you to explain things to me so scientifically, Amy," Serena said. She, Raye and Lita laughed, causing Amy to blush a bright red. Amy was a Psychiatrist, but even when she wasn't at work, she always brought a little bit of work home.

"But thanks Amy," Serena said. "Seriously." She wiped away another tear from her face and Amy smiled and nodded.

"I just feel bad," Serena said. "He was always so good and honest. I feel like I at least owe at least that much to him, you know?" Raye stood up.

"Sorry, but I need to step out real quick," Raye said before leaving the table, much to Serena's bewilderment.

"Is it just me," Serena said, "or is Raye acting a little stranger than usual today?"

"Maybe she has her period," Lita said.

"Lita," Amy said said in shock. "That's disgusting!" Her face was even redder than before, if that was even a possibility. Serena laughed. The server walked over—carrying a tray of drinks—and to Serena's surprise, had an extra glass of ice. As if on cue, Raye also returned to the table.

"Sorry about that," Raye said. "I just wanted to call my husband and see if your stuff had come yet."

"Are you sure Chad doesn't mind doing it?" Serena asked.

"He better not mind if he knows what's good for him," Raye said, resulting in another burst of laughter.

They arrived at the restaurant at just past 5:00 that evening and didn't leave until almost 9:00 at night. They spent the evening drinking, eating, laughing, crying, remembering the good times and sharing their dreams for the future. For one night, all of Serena's worries were finally behind her. Actually, it was probably the first time in six months that she actually felt hopeful. She loved the feeling, and never wanted to let it go.

When the girls left the restaurant and waiting for their cab, Serena closed her eyes and breathed in the cool, fresh air. Winter was only days away, but it was already knocking on the door. Serena smiled and tears of happiness stung her beautiful blue eyes. What Serena did not know was how much her life was about to change that winter, for better or for worse.

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That's all for chapter three. Please let me know what you think in the comments. Please look forward to the next chapter coming soon.


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Snowed In – Part One

It was December 21st—the first day of winter—and boy did the season come in swinging. The news had predicted a "dusting" of snow on the ground. Whomever made that prediction had better been fired, because at that moment—3:04 in the afternoon to be precise—it was at four inches deep and counting. The most recent weather reports had been hyping the storm as "record-breaking" snowfall, and so far it was looking to be 100% correct.

Serena was walking back to her home—or rather Raye's home—in the snow. Her face was barely visible under the knit hat and behind the pink scarf wrapped around her. In her hands were several plastic bags full of groceries.

When Serena had arrived to the store earlier, there had been no more than two inches of fresh powder on the ground. By the time she left, she couldn't even recognize where she was. The usually bustling Main Street was covered in a sheet of glistening white. Some of the Christmas decorations, such as the light-up snowmen which were attached to the bases of every light pole, were completely engulfed by snow which had drifted with the wind, leaving behind a mound of snow that glowed from within.

Any other time, Serena would had been awestruck by such a beautiful sight, but at that moment, all she cared about was getting out of the cold and finally putting down the bags of food, the handles of which were cutting into her gloved fingers like knives. When she had been walking to the store earlier that afternoon, there were still plenty of people passing her up and down the street. Less than one hour later, as she was walking home, only a few stragglers remained, everybody else being smart enough before the weather had gotten bad enough. Serena was cursing her stubbornness when she crashed into something.

Serena screamed and fell back. She felt a sudden pain in her head, and that was the last thing she remembered.

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Serena was looking at herself, though the self she was looking at was her at the age of twelve. Her hair was much longer than her hair as an adult. In fact, it would had probably almost reached her lower back if it weren't for the hairstyle: two buns on the top of her head with a pigtail coming down from each one. She was standing in a small room full of people. The room reeked of orchids. The room was located in a funeral parlor.

In front of the young girl were two open caskets, and in each one laid one of her parents. They had just recently died in a car accident. They left their only child, Serena, behind.

'Why am I here?' Serena asked herself. She tried to move, but could not. All she could do was watch the younger version of herself as she looked on at the bodies of her parents. Then a young, but slightly older boy walked over to her. His name was Darien.

Darien had teased the young girl ever since he first met her years earlier. He teased her mostly for her hairstyle, though at times he would also mock her for her clumsiness and less-than-satisfactory grades. "Meatball Head" was his favorite name to call her, do to her interesting hairstyle. Often times, Serena would go home and complain about him to her mother, who would usually just laugh and say, "that's because he likes you," to which Serena would usually respond, "as if."

However, Darien did none of those things. Instead, he did the most unexpected thing imaginable: he wrapped his arms around Serena and embraced her.

"I'm so sorry Serena…"

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"Darien!" Serena shouted while sitting up suddenly in bed.

"Whoa! Were you dreaming about me, Meatball Head?" Darien replied. He was standing at the doorway of the bedroom and drinking a cup of coffee. Serena held back a scream upon seeing him.

"D-Darien?" she asked, completely shocked. "What the hell are you doing here?" She looked around the unfamiliar room. She was in a bedroom, but it wasn't hers. It was a room she had never seen before.

"Where am I?"

"My place," Darien said, still grinning. Seeing the concern on her face, he continued, "You crashed into me walking down the sidewalk. You fell back and hit your head pretty hard. I carried you back here." It was then that Serena realized she has a nagging pain in her head.

"Thanks, I guess," Serena said. She gasped when she noticed that she was wearing a tee shirt and no pants. Her face turned beet red.

"You were in cold and wet clothes. I had to get you out of them. I promise that I didn't see anything." Serena's face softened after he explained himself.

"Not that there's much to see anyway, Meatball Head," Darien said with a wide grin. That reignited Serena's anger.

"Oh screw you, Darien," Serena said. "Why do you have to be such an asshole?" She pointed at her head, "And just in case your idiot head hasn't noticed, I don't have 'meatballs' anymore."

"Once a Meatball Head, always a Meatball Head," Darien said with a laugh.

"And some people just never change," Serena said. "When I thought that you actually grew up. No wonder you don't have a girlfriend."

"Is that any way to talk to somebody who saved your life?" Darien asked. "And how would you know that I don't have a girlfriend? Maybe I do."

"Yeah right," Serena said with a mocking laugh. "Any girl would have to be deaf, dumb and blind to go out with you."

"I think you're jealous. You should have seen how you were calling my name in your sleep. 'Darien, Darien.'"

"Well that's, umm," Serena said, trying to explain herself. She couldn't think of anything to say. Her anger had given way completely to embarrassment.

"Anyway," Darien said, "your clothes should just about be dry. But it's really bad out there."

"I'll take my chances," Serena spat back.

"By the way, I made you something," Darien said. "Hold on." He left the room, leaving Serena looking confused. He returned about a minute later with a steaming mug. He walked over to Serena and handed it to her. She immediately recognized the aroma as hot chocolate.

"Th-thanks," Serena said. She brought the cup towards her lips, but then stopped.

"Wait," Serena said, "how do I know that you didn't Rufie this or something?"

"Come on," Darien said with a chuckle, "I would never do that. Besides, I'm into the deaf, dumb a blind type. Remember?" Serena burst out laughing at the comment and Darien joined her.

Darien left the room as she drank the hot cocoa. The blinds over the window were wide open and she could see that it was snowing even harder than it was earlier. In fact, it was falling so much and so steady that it looked like an impenetrable wall of snow falling from the sky.

'There's no way I'm going home in this,' Serena thought to herself. She looked down at the remaining hot cocoa. 'He's a jerk, but he's not really a bad person.' She thought back to six months prior at Raye's house. Darien had embraced her then, just like he did when she was a child.

"Darien… why did you do that?"

Right then Darien returned to the room, carrying her freshly-folded clothing.

"Sorry it took so long," Darien said. "I'll leave you alone to get dressed. Come out when you're done." Serena took hold of the clothes, and for a moment her fingers touched his and she felt a shiver travel through her entire body. She let out a small gasp and her eyes met his. Such a deep blue, like an ocean, begging to have its deepest secrets discovered. She felt her body cover in gooseflesh and she shivered.

"Thanks," Serena said, just above a whisper. Darien smiled, which caused the shivers to course through her body again, and with greater intensity. He left the room and closed the door behind him. Serena placed her hand against her forehead to check for a fever. None.

"What the hell is happening to me?" She looked out the window again. It was falling ever faster, as if that was even possible. Serena turned to look at the night stand and sighed in relief when she saw that her phone was on top. She picked it up and dialed a number. After nobody picked up, she left a message.

"Hey Raye it's Serena. I got stick out in the storm, so I'm going to spend the night at a friend's house."

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Wow. A bit of a shorter chapter, but a lot happened, right? I'm really excited to see where the story will go from here. Please let me know what you thpught.


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

Snowed In – Part Two

Serena exited the room about ten minutes later, wearing her fitted blue jeans and a pink turtle-neck sweater. The living room that she stepped in to was dark and quiet, and was illuminated only by the light given off by the TV. She could hear a noise coming from the kitchen which connected directly to the living room. She stepped further into the room and her senses were struck by the smell of garlic, and she couldn't help herself from salivating. She could see Darien cooking in the kitchen.

When he saw her, he smiled warmly. Serena felt a lump form in her throat when he smiled at her. She quickly swallowed it down.

'What the hell is wrong with me?' Serena thought. She tossed it in her head for a few seconds before coming to the conclusion that she had hit her head and must had still been a little loopy. She gave herself a pat on the back for figuring out her problem and forced a smile back to Darien.

"About time, Meatball Head," Darien said as his once warm smile changed to a grin. Serena sighed and opened her mouth to say something witty in return, but then her stomach grumbled and she realized that she was too hungry to even bother.

"I said don't call me that," she managed to say, minus her usual raillery. Darien simply laughed.

"Fine. Fine. So have you reconsidered my offer?"

"What offer?" Serena asked, now finding herself feeling quite perplexed. She wondered if perhaps he had made some strange arrangement with her that she didn't remember.

"It's really, REALLY bad out there," he said. Yes, that was it. "You can, um, stay here if you want." Serena found herself smiling internally. She didn't exactly understand why, but she found it a little cute that he stammered. That smile got wiped away real quick when she saw how serious his face had become.

"Actually," he said, dead serious, "I really don't feel at all comfortable with you going out in this." Serena couldn't hold in her laughter at watching his serious expression. To her, it looked like he was trying to win a staring contest. She laughed for several moments, but when his face didn't change, she stopped.

"Well if I stay," she said teasingly, "you better keep your hands to yourself." She then gave him a wink, which caused him to blush.

"I assume that means yes," he said.

"Assume away," Serena said with another wink. Upon seeing his face get so red, she burst out laughing again. His expression changed to confusion, which only caused her to laugh more. She quickly calmed herself down, feeling that if she had laughed for too much longer, she would risk passing out.

"I'm sorry," she said. "Just you look so serious. I've never seen that look on you before." Darien's face softened and he smiled. Serena took a deep breath and sighed.

"I haven't laughed that hard in a long time," she said. "Thanks. By the way, what are you making? It smells amazing." Darien grinned widely.

"It's my specialty," he said. "Actually, it's one of the two things I know how to make."

"Oh yeah? And what are you making today?"

"Pasta," Darien said with a laugh.

"And what's your other 'specialty'?"

"Eggs." Darien laughed again and this time, she laughed with him.

"Well it's more than I can make," she said. She thought for a moment, then said, "I can make a really good Mac and Cheese." Darien grinned mischievously at her statement.

"Is it Kraft?" he asked. Serena looked shocked, but then smiled.

"You got me," she said. They looked at each other for a moment then both broke out laughing.

"I remember," Darien said between laughs, "that they called you 'Serena the Human Tornado' in Home Ec. class. You couldn't even boil water without setting something on fire." Serena looked at Darien in shock, but her eyes were still laughing.

"Just for your information, that was 15 years ago," she reminded him. They both laughed again. They laughed for several seconds before calming down.

"By the way," Darien said, "I have something for us."  
"Oh? Is it a surprise?" Serena asked playfully. Darien chuckled and gestured for her to stay where she was. He walked over to the fridge, opened it, and removed a bottle—rather a magnum—of Sauvignon Blanc. Her eyes widened when she saw the bottle.

"You can't have pasta without wine," he said. She couldn't disagree.

* * *

Dinner was delicious, much to Serena's surprise. Darien had said that pasta was his 'specialty' and when she took her first bite, she knew he wasn't kidding. He might had only known how to cook two things, but if he did his eggs even half as well as his pasta, she knew that she would be in for a treat the next morning. Luckily, he made a lot of pasta, because she had two servings. Two large servings. In fact, she could had definitely been good for a third, but after she realized how much she actually ate, she began to feel a little self-conscious.

They spent most of the dinner talking about their Junior High and High School days. They spoke about their favorite teachers, their most-hated teachers, the senior pranks, the prom, the most popular people in school, and even their own dreams from when they were in high school. Serena told Darien that she had always wanted to be a nurse.

"So why didn't you?" he had asked. Her eyes became sad and she looked down.

"I was planning to go for it," she said, "but my husband got a job in Maryland, and I guess that in the hustle of everything, I just couldn't do it." Darien knew to quickly change the topic. Serena found out that Darien always wanted to be a doctor, but was currently a Physician's Assistant at a Pediatrician's office. When he told her that, she couldn't hide her smile.

"What is it?" he asked, upon seeing her smile.

"Nothing," Serena said. "It's just that you are a really good person." Darien looked at her with a confused look.

"Why would you th…" he was cut off by the lights in the entire apartment going out. Serena shrieked, followed by breathing heavily.

"D-Darien? Wh-what's g-g-going on? I'm sc-scared."

"Don't worry," Darien said as calmly as he could. "It's just the power. It's probably just from the weather. Stay right there. Don't move! I'm going to come to you." He could hear in her voice and by the way she was breathing that she was beginning to panic, and all he knew was that he needed to get to her. He needed to get to her before she had a panic attack. He stood up and felt around for something—anything—until he felt the edge of the table. There was very little light coming into the room, but his eyes adjusted quickly. He saw Serena's outline from across the table and reached to touch her shoulder. When he touched her, she screamed.

"Don't worry," Darien said with urgency in his voice, "it's me." He said it as calmly as he could. He could hear her breathing begin to slow to a steadier rate. She wrapped her arms around him and sobbed. At first, Darien didn't know how to react, but then he wrapped his own arms around her.

"Shhh, it's okay," Darien said as comforting as he could. He used one of his hands to stroke her hair as the other wrapped tightly around her body. After a few moments, her sobbing stopped and her breathing returned to normal. Darien attempted to release her from his embrace, but when he did, her grip on his body tightened.

"Just let me for a bit longer," Serena said, barely above a whisper. She buried her head into her chest. "I'm sorry I'm such a baby. I'm so afraid of the dark." Darien held her again, and it was then that he noticed her scent. She smelt of citrus and vanilla. He took a deep breath and took it in. It was an intoxicating smell, and he could not get enough of it. To his disappointment, it was now her who began to pull away.

"I'm so embarrassed," Serena said. "I just get so scared of the dark, and of storms. I'm such a child." She laughed nervously. It was almost a forced laugh.  
"It's okay," Darien said. He laughed nervously himself.

"I'm so stupid," she said. If the lights had not gone out, Darien would had seen how beet-red her face had become.

"Don't call yourself that," Darien said. She looked up at him, her eyes having adjusted to the dark, with a look of shock. He sighed and looked away.

"I'm going to get some candles," he said.

"Would you mind if I went with you?" Darien smiled warmly.

"Of course not."

* * *

Darien had all of his candles stored in one of the kitchen draws. As he felt around to find the correct draw, he could feel the constant tugging on the back of his shirt from Serena. Whenever he felt it, he smiled.

"Here they are," he said as he opened the drawer. Though it was almost pitch-dark in the room, he could make out the candles. They were pure-white taper candles, and even in the almost complete lack of light, they appeared to glow as bright as the sun to Darien. After finding them, Darien and Serena set them up on the kitchen counter and the coffee table in the living room. There were only six candles overall, but they were more than enough to bring adequate light to the previously pitch-black room. After lighting the final one on the coffee table, the two of them sat down on the couch.

"How long do you think they'll last for?" Serena asked. She was feeling a lot calmer. Even with the soft glow of the candles, it was still dark. However, she was happy to have at least some light.

"I don't know," he said. "Maybe a couple of hours? I've never had to light the candles before, but thank God I had them."

"And how long do you think the power will be out for?" Darien thought about his answer for a moment. In the end, he decided to be completely honest with him.

"It could be all night," he said. Darien paused and looked at Serena to check for her response. He was happy when he noticed she didn't seem to upset. He continued, "It's really bad out there. I doubt any of the electric crews will be able to even do anything about it tonight." He sat back completely in to the couch, welcoming the feel of the soft leather as his back sunk in. Serena noticed it was beginning to get a little cold in the apartment. Unfortunately, without the electric, there was no way for the heat to work, and the temperature was dropping really fast.

"Um, Darien?" Serena stammered. He looked over to her, but she was looking away from him, her hands together and thumbs twiddling nervously.

"Yeah?"

"N-Never mind." Darien sat forward in the couch.

"Hey, you can't do that. You need to say it." Serena sighed and looked over to him. She hoped that he couldn't see her blushing in the dark.

"Okay," she said, "but don't judge." Darien nodded and she took a deep breath, as if doing so would also gather the confidence she needed to ask her question. It worked.

"Do you mind if I sit a little closer?" she asked him. "It's a little cold and maybe, you know, you can help keep me warm." She said it. At that moment, all she wanted to do was crawl into a hole and die.

"Of course," Darien said. He smiled as she, without as much as looking at him, shimmied herself closer to her. A couple inches at a time, she managed to scoot over to the point that their arms were touching. Darien laughed to himself and picked up his arm to allow her to move in closer. She looked up at him as if to ask, 'are you sure?' That time, Darien couldn't hold in his laughter.

"You won't get any warmer all the way over there," he said. "Don't worry, I won't bite." Hesitantly, Serena moved over until she felt the side of her body pressed directly against his. Darien lowered his arm around to shoulder and pulled her in closer. She gasped as she felt her body press against his completely. Then almost immediately, all of her nervousness faded away. He was warm. In fact, his warmth was intoxicating to her. She felt safe. It was as if there was nothing in the worlds that could hurt her. It was a strange, but welcoming feeling, and it was a feeling she had never experienced before, even with her husband.

She didn't know how long the two of them sat like that, nor did she know at which point she rested her head on his chest. All she knew was the sound of his beating heart—strong and steady—and she closed her eyes listening to it. It was as if the beating of his heart was a lullaby just for her. Serena didn't realize that the entire time, she was smiling.

"Darien?" Serena finally asked at one point, being the first to break the silence.

"Yeah?"

"Why are you such a good guy? I mean, I always thought you hated me." She could hear the pace of his heart increase ever so slightly.

"I never hated you, Serena," he said. "Why are you saying something so silly?" Serena shifted her head slightly so that she could look up toward his face without removing her ear from the special spot on his chest.

"It's because you're always teasing me," she said. "Yet there are times, like tonight, that you're so nice and…gentle. I just don't get it." His heart was beginning to beat faster and harder. In fact, it was beating so hard that she could not only hear, but feel it against the side of her face. However, she barely processed the feeling. She continued to stare at him, dead serious, awaiting his response. Serena couldn't understand how she had suddenly become so bold as to ask that question. However, it was something she wondered every once and again, but it was after her husband's funeral and Darien's attempt of comforting her that really got her thinking. That night of the storm was the complete tipping point and she knew that she had to ask the question. She just needed to know. Still, a small part of her was afraid of what his answer might have been.

Darien swallowed the newly-formed lump in his throat and let out a nervous laugh. His heart had been beating fast before, but now it was jack-hammering, threatening to rip itself straight out of his chest.

"I don't know," he finally said. "I guess I…you know…" Serena lifted her head completely from his chest and sat up straight. The side of her face that was pressed against his chest felt ice cold and was practically begging to return to its spot. Serena did her best to ignore the feeling.

"I know what?" Serena asked. The part of her head that didn't want to know the answer shrunk down almost completely. It was the part of herself that was warning her that the answer could change everything, but at that moment she didn't care. She wanted to know. She NEEDED to know.

"I've always kind of liked you." He said it. His face felt almost numb and his head felt like it was going to explode. He was blushing with such intensity that it was a miracle it didn't illuminate the room. He took a deep breath.

"I mean you're so beautiful," he continued. "I never knew how to talk to you. Whenever I saw you, I wanted to say something—anything—and I'm sorry that it came out as teasing. Please know that I never wanted to hurt you." Serena's heart stopped. She could hear her mother's voice repeating in her head, 'He probably likes you.' She wasn't kidding.

What happened next she couldn't had predicted or understood, and part of her didn't want to. In a sudden motion, as if completely out of her control, she leaned forward and kissed him. At first, it was a small and gentle kiss on the lips. Darien's eyes were wide with shock, but then he relaxed and closed them as he kissed her back. He reached his hands around her back and pulled her closer and kissed her more deeply, this time parting her lips gently with the tip of his tongue. Her body reacted by moving her tongue to meet his. Gently—almost playfully—their tongues danced together.

Serena moaned, brought her hands to his hair and plunged her fingers deep into his thick, dark locks of hair. She let he inhibitions go completely as she pushed the weight of her body against his. Darien got the hint and laid himself back on to the seat of the couch. She climbed on top of him, the entire time not removing her lips from his.

Darien ran his hands up and down her back slowly, each time becoming slightly bolder. He gently touched the skin of her lower back beneath the fabric of her sweater, then her sides, as his hands traveled slowly up. Serena's body trembled with every single motion of his fingers. When his hands finally reached her covered breasts, she offered no resistance, even as he pulled the fabric out of the way and held her completely. She moaned her tongue now stabbing into his mouth without reserve.  
It was then that she felt it. At first she was able to ignore it, but soon she felt as if a 200-pound weight was attached to her finger. It was her wedding ring. She removed his mouth from his reluctantly, and to his dismay.

"I-I'm sorry," she said. "I thought I was ready, but I can't. I just can't." Darien wanted to plea with her. If he had, she probably wouldn't had been able to resist. Her resolve was already hanging by a thread as it stood. But he saw her eyes. They were brimming with tears.

"I understand," he said. It was probably the most difficult thing he ever had to say in his life.

"I'm so sorry again," Serena said. She stood up and walked briskly into the bedroom, seeming to no longer care about the lack of light. Darien could hear a click as she locked the door behind her. He had stood up and reached out his hand as she walked away, but it was already too late. She was gone. Serena laid down on Darien's bed, rolled into a ball, and cried herself to sleep.

* * *

Whew! That's it for this chapter. Please tell me what you think in the comments. Please look forward to Chapter Five: The Ultimate Betrayal.


	5. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

The Ultimate Betrayal

Serena felt the familiar warmth of the morning sun against her cheek. She moaned and turned her head away, resting her opposite ear against the pillow. Soon, her left cheek began to feel warm instead, and she absently pulled the blanket over her head. The obtrusive light from the sun gone, she began to slowly drift back to sleep. Just at that moment, the events from the night before rushed back to her and Serena gasped whilst abruptly sitting up in bed, sending the upper-portion of the blanket off the side to the floor.

Immediately upon sitting up, Serena felt a terrible pain wash over her head, along with a tightness behind her eyes. It was as if she were experiencing the worst hangover of her life. She could feel the beat of her heart both in her chest and neck. The room – Darien's room – began to close around her. Serena was experiencing the beginnings of a panic attack. It was something that she had unfortunately become familiar with since the death of her husband. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down.

"Breath in through your nose," Serena said to herself, barely above a whisper. She took a long, slow breath of air in through her nose. 'Out through your mouth,' she told herself as she slowly exhaled. She repeated the process a few more times and felt her nerves begin to calm. Serena sat up in the bed for a few more minutes – her eyes closed – and let her mind relax. She did not know how much time had passed before she finally opened her eyes.

The room was not her own; it was Darien's. She was in his apartment. The room was small and plain, but was neat. The bed, which was now a mess, was topped with a solid green blanket. The furniture in the room was plain, unpolished wood. The walls were white. The blinds of the room's single window were drawn, letting in the golden light from the sun. Drops of water dripped down the front of the window, which was, Serena presumed, from the melting snow. All things considered, the room felt comforting. However, there was something else about the room that Serena could not quite place. There was an aura that coated and permeated the room. If she had to think of a word to describe it, the closest thing she could think of was sadness. Yes, there was something about the room that just exhibited sadness.

As Serena was about to toss the thought about in her head, a pleasant aroma filled the room, and all her other senses were overtaken by her sense of smell. It smelt like bacon and eggs. Despite all the thoughts going through Serena's head at that moment, as well as her reservations against remaining in the apartment any longer than she had to, she felt her mouth begin to salivate. The smell was irresistible. 'His other specialty,' she thought with a slight grin.

Serena planted both of her feel onto the carpeted floor and began to stand when her knees felt weak and she abruptly sat back down.

'What if he brings up last night? What do I do?' A small – albeit strong – part of her considered the possibility of leaving through her window. She thought she had spied a fire escape outside of it. She quickly dismissed the thought, however. She knew that she had to face what had happened the night before. Serena took one final deep breath, forced herself to stand up, and exited the door of Darien's bedroom.

The moment Serena entered the living room, the smell of eggs and bacon hit her so hard, she almost felt herself get knocked back. She could see Darien in the kitchen, scrambling eggs on the stove. The small table was already set with two plates and drinking glasses, along with a steaming plate of bacon in the center, alongside an unopened bottle of orange juice. It was with lots of pulp, which just so happpened to be the way she liked it. Serena felt herself grin as she stepped further into the room. Darien noticed her and shot a quick smile in her direction. Serena felt her knees weaken again, though this time for a different reason.

"I knew the smell of food would wake you up," Darien quipped. Serena shot him her best angry look and they both laughed.

"What time is it?" Serena asked as she pulled out a chair to take a seat at the table.

"About seven in the morning," he said, keeping his eyes on what he was doing with the stove. There was a ding, which caused Serena to jump.

"A little jumpy, aren't we?" Darien asked as he walked over to the culprit: a toaster oven. He pulled out four slices of white toast and placed them on a plate.

"Still reeling from the power going out I guess," Serena lied. She was definitely on edge this morning, but the electrical issues from the night before were long-forgotten. Her knees were beginning to feel weak yet again, and she promptly sat in the chair. Darien plated the eggs and toast and walked over to the table, a plate in each hand. He placed the dishes in the center of the table and sat down across from Serena, and she struggled to swallow the lump in her throat to no effect.

"Here, give me your plate," Darien said, reaching over and taking in before Serena could pick it up himself. He placed a heaping scoop of eggs on to her plate, along with two slices of toast and three pieces of bacon. He then reached the plate back over the table and placed it down in front of Serena.

"Remember I told you that eggs were my other specialty? Well dig in!" Darien laughed and Serena couldn't help but snicker as well, despite her nervousness. She looked down at her plate of eggs, which were still steaming hot. She looked up at Darien, who was watching her intently, presumably waiting for her to take a bite. Slowly, she reached a fork-full of egg to her mouth and took a bite. Immediately, her eyes opened wide, and she could feel his smile, even though she didn't see it.

"Delicious," Serena exclaimed through a mouth of food, causing a bit to launch from her mouth. She covered her mouth with her hand in embarrassment. However, she couldn't hide the redness on her cheeks. Darien laughed, causing her cheeks to flush even further, if it were even possible.

"Same old Meatball Head," Darien exclaimed between laughs. Serena sent him daggers with her eyes, which only caused his laughter to increase. Upon realizing the ridiculousness of the situation, Serena began laughing as well. The two of them sat at the table, laughing, for what seemed like five minutes – and it very well might had been. Serena began feeling faint from the lack of oxygen and forced herself to take a deep breath to calm herself down. Darien did the same, and soon the laugher reduced to a few stray chuckles, and finally, turned to silence. Serena, though she did not realize it herself, was now able to look into his eyes without any nervousness.

The two sat together in silence for several moments. However, it was a comfortable silence; something the two of them had never experienced before. Even when she was with her late husband, Serena always had the nagging feeling that something – anything – had to be said to break the silence. She, however, did not get that feeling while sitting across from Darien. It was as if they had ascended to a new level where primitive, verbal communication was simply not necessary. A part of her wished that it had lasted for longer.

"I wasn't teasing you." Darien was the first to break the silence, much to Serena's dismay. She felt like she had to find the words to respond, as if she had forgotten how to speak. She finally opened her mouth to speak, but still, no words came out. Serena closed her mouth and looked into Darien's eyes. Unbeknownst to her, her leg was shaking in nervousness. Or was it shaking in a strange sort of longing?

Darien continued, "It's what I've always loved about you."

Serena's breathing stopped.

'It's what I've always loved about you.'

'…loved about you…'

'…loved…you…'

'…love…'

'I've always kind of liked you.'

Memories of the night before rushed through Serena's head. The confession, the kiss, the couch; it was more than she could handle. In a sudden motion, she stood up from her chair, causing it to fall back on to the floor.

"I…I need to go," Serena exclaimed. Her eyes burned in her attempt to hold back her tears. She had to get out of the apartment as fast as possible. She couldn't let Darien see her cry. Anything but that.

She briskly walked to the door and fumbled with the doorknob. It wouldn't open. Quickly, she realized that the deadbolt was activated. Serena proceeded to disengage the deadbolt, opened the door and left the apartment, not bothering to close the door behind her.

Darien stared, flabbergasted, at the now-ajar door. Everything happened so fast that he barely had a chance to comprehend what had happened. All that he knew was that she was gone. She was gone, and it was his fault. Darien punched his right thigh with his fist.

"You idiot!"

* * *

Serena exited the building and almost immediately collapsed to her knees on the walkway. A few people walking along the sidewalk looked in her direction, but then quickly turned away. Serena, however, didn't notice; the entire outside world didn't exist at this moment. She dropped her head into her hands and sobbed.

"I'm…so…sorry…" Serena said between sobs.

"I'm s-so…so so…sorry…"

Her heart was weighed down with guilt. She felt guilty for kissing Darien, felt sorry for hurting him and she felt sorry for herself. Most of all, however, Serena felt guilty for feeling something for him. After her husband had passed away, Serena made a promise to herself; she promised to never love another person the way she loved him. By just feeling something – anything – for Darien, made her feel as if she had betrayed her husband; as if she had emotionally cheated on him.

Serena felt that it – never loving somebody else – was the very least she could do for him. It was the very least she could do to help her make amends to herself for her greatest guilt of all: not being able to say goodbye to him. Still, she couldn't get Darien's face – his eyes, his smile – out of her head. She tried to push it away. She tried to replace Darien's face with his, but she found that she couldn't. It wasn't even that she couldn't push the thought of Darien out of her head; she couldn't think of her husband's face. It was as if he were an old memory from decades before – one in which she had to struggle to remember - and not of her husband who had passed away only six months earlier. The realization that she couldn't place his face made her feel even worse.

RING!

RING!

Serena barely heard the ringing of her cell phone. The sound of the familiar, classic rotary phone ring tone, pulled her away from her thoughts, and when she pulled the phone from her pocket and read the name displayed on her screen, it was enough to knock her back to reality. Mina was calling.

RING!

Serena swiped up with her thumb, accepting the call. She then brought the phone up to her ear.

"M-Mina?" her voice cracked. There was silence coming through the receiver.

"Mina, are you there?" There was more silence, followed by the sound of shuffling.

"Serena, thank God," the voice on the other side exclaimed. It was definitely Mina speaking, but it was not the way Serena always remembered Mina speaking. She sounded almost disconnected from herself, as if it weren't her speaking, but a text-to-speech program which was speaking with her voice. It lacked all the peppiness and enthusiasm which Mina was known for. The sound of her voice scared Serena. No, it terrified her.

"Mina? Are you okay? What's going on?" Another moment of silence, followed by something that might had been a sigh.

"I really want to see you." Mina finally said.

"I really wanna see you too," Serena replied. Since returning to New York the second time, she had not seen Mina at all. Not once.

"Think you can meet me at the café?" Mina asked. "In, like, 20 minutes?"

Serena wiped off the last of the wetness from her face and took a moment to get her bearings. The café was about a fifteen-minute walk from Darien's apartment, she figured. That gave her plenty of time to collect herself and walk over to there. She only hoped that her eyes were not too puffed up; and if they were, she hoped that it could be explained by the cold against her face.

"That's perfect," Serena replied. Mina sighed on the other line. The sound triggered a sort of cerebral horror in Serena's mind. She knew that whatever Mina wanted to speak to her about, it wouldn't be good.

"Okay, I'll see you then," Mina said. Before Serena could say something in return, the call ended. Mina disconnected the call without even saying goodbye. Serena wanted to ponder what had just happened, but remembered that she didn't have much time. She stood up and brushed the sand from her knees. She took a deep breath and slapped her cheeks.

"Get it together," she told herself. Serena straightened her clothes, turned down the sidewalk and began her walk toward the café.

* * *

Serena opened the door to the café. The difference in pressure between the inside of the building and the cold outdoors caused a rush of warm air to blow across Serena's body. It was accompanied by the familiar sound of the old-fashioned bell attached to the top of the door. At most times, the sound would had been comfortably familiar. This time, Serena paid it no mind.

Serena remembered when the Crown Arcade first opened, when she and her friends were only twelve years old. At that time, it was the first stand-alone arcade in the area. Before that, if kids wanted to play arcade games, they had to either have their parents drive them several miles away to the nearest location. Either that, or to the bowling alley, which had a limited collection of coin-op games such as Mortal Kombat (which Serena's parents would have killed her for playing) and Terminator 2 (which Amy's parents un-endearingly referred to as "the gun game").

Before Crown opened, the girls would usually assign one of their houses to be the "hang out" spot. All was fine, but soon it became extremely redundant. They wanted a place of their own, where they did not feel like they were under a constant supervision from one of their parents. That's why it was so exciting when "The Crown" opened.

At its start, The Crown was just an arcade and nothing more. A few years later, the owners purchased the space next door and expanded. They opened up that part into a café, which was modeled after an old-time diner, along with a coin operated jukebox in every booth. As the kids grew up and the overall interest in arcades began to dwindle, Crown Arcade and Café became Crown Café and Barcade. During the day, it operated primarily as a café, albeit one with a wide collection of classic arcade games. When the afternoon gave way to the evening, however, The Crown offered itself to an older clientele, with great food, cheap drinks and lots and lots of the best classic arcade games of all time.

Upon entering The Crown, the first thing one would see is the old-fashioned diner bar, lined with stools. Off to the left were several booths against the walls along with square tables in the middle. To the right was a wooden archway which led to a large room complete with a wrap-around bar. Against the walls in that room were dozens of arcade games. The games included such classics as: Ninja Turtles, Contra, The Simpsons and Street Fighter 2. There were some even older games – Ms. Pac Man, Galaga, Joust – littered between the others.

Some of Serena's greatest memories were in The Crown. Her first date, meeting Amy, beating Ninja Turtles with Raye, Mina and Lita, and most importantly, hours and hours of laughter with her best friends. These moments, along with countless others, were precious to Serena. They were moments that helped shaped her in to the person she is today. They were priceless moments – each and every one of them. That was why it was surreal when she spotted Mina sitting alone, not at "their" booth, but at the booth in the furthest corner. Serena wanted to pinch herself and wake up from this nightmare. Instead, she swallowed and began stepping towards the young girl.

As if sensing her presence, Mina looked up. Upon seeing her face, Serena's heart stopped. Mina looked ten – no, twenty – years older. Her eyes were sunken in. Her hair, which usually seemed to glow, now looked almost transparent. Her eyes, as deep blue and clear as the sky, now seemed an ill shade of gray. Serena wanted to run. She wanted to run to the nearest airport and board the first available flight to somewhere; to anywhere.

"Serena," Mina said. The voice was definitely hers, though it did not match the face. It was as if this person was not Mina at all, but was in fact some sort of half-baked doppelganger. It sounded like Mina, it (sort of) looked like Mina, but it wasn't Mina. Underneath it all, this version of Mina was just an empty shell. Serena didn't realize how, at that moment, how close that was to being the truth.

"M-Mina?" Serena didn't mean it to come out as a question. Of course it was Mina. Mina gave a forced smirk.

"I look pretty bad, huh?" Serena was taken by surprise by that statement.

"N-no! Not at all."

"You're such a bad liar," Mina shot back. Serena walked over to her and Mina stood up. They hugged and Serena was surprised by how frail she felt. She was almost afraid that if she were to hug her too hard, the girl's bones would shatter. Serena felt almost relieved when Mina broke the embrace. Mina had tears inn her eyes.

"Hey Mina…are you okay? You have me really worried." Mina wiped her eyes and shrugged.

"Honestly? No, I'm not. I'm not okay at all." Serena had no words. Mina sighed and sat down. Serena hesitated before sitting down herself across from her. They sat together in silence for a few moments. It was not the comfortable silence she had experienced earlier that morning with Darien. Not this silence. This silence was like a weight on Serena's chest.

"Oh my God Mina, what happened?" Mina shook her head.

"You need to listen to me," Mina said. "If I don't tell you now, I don't think I will ever have the strength to say it again." Serena sat in silence, listening. A part of her, however, was not sure that she wanted to.

"Chris stopped by here on one of his business trips about a year ago."

"My husband did?" Serena asked. Mina nodded and continued.

"Yeah. So he came by to visit for the day and the three of us went out for a few drinks." Mina thought for a moment and then clarified, "Me, Chris and Raye."

"He never told me he came here," Serena said. She looked a little hurt. Mina shrugged again, and Serena could feel a small pang of anger, which she quickly tried to shake away to no avail.

"I figured he wouldn't," Mina said. Serena opened her mouth to say something in return, but Mina continued, "I mean, why would he?"

'Why would he?' Serena thought to herself in anger. 'Maybe because he's my husband? Maybe because we didn't keep anything from each other? Maybe because I would have wanted to visit MY friends and MY family?' She said nothing.

"So we went out for a few drinks at The Crown. God, we must have been here for hours, just drinking and talking, the three of us. Anyway, Raye said she had to leave and I was going to get going too, but Chris was like, 'No, let's keep drinking'. I had nothing to do the next day, so I said okay." A tear escaped Mina's eye and she didn't bother wiping it away. However, Serena didn't notice. She was listening intently, but her eyes were blinded by rage. Was it rage towards Mina? Was it rage towards Raye? Was it rage towards her husband?

"I think we ended up doing a few shots. Honestly, everything is just a blur. Even now, I only remember bits and pieces. The memories, they come and they go, you know? After that though, I don't remember a thing." The tears were now falling freely down her face, but she kept going.

"I really don't…don't know what the hell happened. I mean…I would have never, EVER done it. God I can't forgive myself." Serena still said nothing; she only listened.

"I don't even remember leaving. All I know is…when I wo-w-woke up…oh my God Serena I'm so sorry." Mina was now sobbing. Her head was down and tears were spilling carelessly on to the table. The boy behind the counter looked for a moment, but then escaped in to the back.

"What happened?" Serena demanded. Mina shook her head and continued crying. Serena pounded her palms on to the table and stood up.

"WHAT HAPPENED?" she screamed. Mina's body jolted, as if she were shot. She looked up to face Serena. Her face was construed in to a look of pure rage Mina had never seen before. Of course, Serena already knew the answer. Mina swallowed and collected herself the best she could.

"Wh…when I-I woke up the n-next morning…we were in…in bed…together," Mina said between sobs. "I-I'm so sorry." What Serena asked next took Mina completely by surprise.

"Does Raye know?" Mina stared at Serena, unable to find the words to answer with. "Did she?" Serena's voice was now calm, and that calmness terrified Mina.

"Raye wouldn't let me talk to you," Mina responded. Serena nodded, turned around and began walking away.

"Serena," Mina called behind her. Serena stopped walking.

"Don't EVER speak to me EVER again," Serena spat, not bothering to turn around. Without any further hesitation, she continued walking out of The Crown.

* * *

Darien woke up from his nap on the couch by a pounding at his door. He groaned and slowly sat up. The pounding continued.

"I'm coming," Darien called in frustration. He walked over to the door and answered it. What he saw on the other side took all the air out of his lungs. Serena was standing at the doorway, her eyes freshly-puffed with new tears.

"Serena?" Darien exclaimed. "What the hell…"

Darien was cut up by the young girl jumping into his arms.

"I didn't know where else to go," Serena said between her tears, in a voice barely above a whisper. Darien was going to say something in return, but then changed his mind. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in as close as he could.

* * *

I'm sorry that it took me SO LONG to get this chapter released. I'm already working on the next one, and hopefully will have it out within the next few days. Look forward to Another One to Hold: Chapter Six, Revelations and Reconciliations.


	6. Chapter Six

_Quick note: As I was rushing to get this chapter published, I performed the most basic of editing. Therefore, I apologize in advance for any grammatical or spelling errors. I'm going to give it a full edit tomorrow. Thanks again, Merry Christmas, and enjoy._

* * *

 **Chapter Six**

 **Revelations**

"Are you going to be long this time?" Serena asked the man as he walked around the spacious bedroom. His dress shirt was unbuttoned at the top, and his tie was hanging loosely around his neck. Serena was sitting down on the king-size bed, following his frantic motions with her eyes and head.

"A couple days," he said. "Where's my suitcase?"

"Under the bed," Serena answered, followed by a sigh.

It was like this every time he went on to one of his business trips; always down to the wire. Serena hated it. She wished that she could spend the last moments before he left actually spending time with him; not desperately trying to get words in as he jumped around the room like a rabbit. She knew that most of what she would say just went in one ear and out the other. By the time he got in to the car, everything she had said would be forgotten.

He fell to his hands and knees and fished the black Samsonite from under the bed. He then stood up, placed it on top, and opened it.

"What is 'a couple'? Two? Three? Five?" The man sighed, transferred the neatly folded clothes from the bed to the suitcase and brushed the few strands of raven-black hair from his forehead. He turned up to face Serena.

"Every time you ask and every time I give you the same answer: I. Don't. Know. I wish I did. Really, I do! But I have zero idea. The best I can give you is 'a couple days'." Serena winced. She could tell that he was annoyed. He looked down at his watch and cursed himself.

"Damn, I'm going to be late!" He packed the last of the items into his case and zipped it up. He then grabbed his jacket off the bed and quickly threw it on.

"Okay, I'm going. I'll see you in a few." He leaned over the bed and gave Serena a quick kiss on the lips before picking up his suitcase and making his way out of the room. Serena stood from the bed and followed.

"Please call me?" she meant to ask, but it came out as a plea. He stopped walking when he reached the front door and turned around. There was a look on his face that she couldn't describe. It was almost fearful.

"Serena," he started, but then hesitated. He swallowed and began to speak again, "I…"

He was cut off by the sound of a car horn.

"Shit," he said. "I'll call you." He turned around again and head out the front door.

"Wait, Chris," Serena started after him, but it was too late. By that time, he was already halfway to the car. She watched as he stepped into the back of the car before he disappeared from her life forever.

* * *

Serena opened her eyes. It was dark in the room, but her eyes quickly adjusted to her surroundings. Before long, she was able to make out more details. Objects which were at first just shapeless shadows began to take form. At first, could make out what appeared to be a table. As her vision improved however, she was able to confirm without a doubt that it surely was one. She was still half-sleeping, which didn't help much with her confusion about the entire situation.

Slowly, she sat up in the chair. She could clearly see now that she was in Darien's apartment, and she was sleeping on his couch. She didn't remember falling asleep; she only remembered the feeling of his body against hers – of his arms wrapped around her – as she wept into his chest. At some point, she figured, she must have cried herself to sleep. Still, it was the morning when she made her way back to Darien's. There was no way, she thought, that she slept long enough that it was night time. Right?

"You're awake," a voice said. Serena looked up in the direction of the voice. Darien was sitting on the adjacent couch. Apparently, between the strange darkness in the room and the confusion accompanying her midday nap, Serena didn't notice that he was sitting mere feet away from her.

"How long was I asleep for?" She asked in a voice that even she recognized as groggy-sounding. Darien stood up and began walking towards the other side of the room.

"Only an hour or so," he said. "I thought that I'd pull the shades down so that you could get some rest." Now it all made sense to her. She nodded in a mixture of understanding and gratitude. As her mind and body continued to become awake, and thus became more aware of what had happened, she began to feel her face flush.

"I'm so embarrassed you saw that," Serena said. Darien drew the shades and Serena winced as her eyes again adjusted; not to the darkness, but to the light that had suddenly poured in through the window. Darien then walked over to the other window and pulled up that shade as well, though at that point, her eyes had adjusted enough that she didn't feel like she was about to be blinded.

"Don't be," Darien said. He turned to Serena and smiled as reassuringly as he could. It helped ease her mind a little. He made his way to the kitchen and poured a glass of water from a large bottle. He then walked to Serena, handed her the glass and sat back down on the adjacent couch.

"Make sure you drink up," he said. She looked down at cool glass in her hand then back up to his blue eyes and nodded. She took a small sip and placed the glass down on top of one of the coasters on the table.

"I don't remember, so I need you to remind me," Serena said. "Did I tell you what happened? Or did I just come here crying like some crazy person?" Darien sat forward and rested his forearms on his knees.

"One," he said, "you're not crazy. Two: yeah, you did. More or less. You told me that Mina and you husband, I mean Chris, had an affair." Serena fought back tears and nodded. "I'm sorry Serena. I hope you don't hate me for saying this, but if he were alive, I would punch him in the face right now." She didn't hate him. Not one bit. In fact, if her husband were alive, Darien would probably have to stop Serena from hitting him herself.

"Do the others know?" Serena looked down at her lap, then back up to Darien.

"At least Raye does. I'm not sure about the other girls, or Andrew." Darien nodded and sat back in his couch.

"So what now?" He asked. Serena looked up at him in surprise, but then shook her head. She eyed the glass of water, which was now dripping with condensation.

"No idea," she said absently. "I just…I just wish this could all go away." Serena was lost in her thoughts and didn't notice that Darien had stood up and sat down next to her until she felt his arm behind her back and his hand on her shoulder. He pulled her towards him and she allowed herself to be pressed against his warmth. She laid her head on his shoulder and sighed.

"You said that she got really drunk?" Darien felt her body stiffen.

"Not that it's any excuse, but yeah."

"And him?"

"Huh?"

"Your husband."

Serena hesitated, her body still stuff against Darien.

"Wh-what about him?" At that moment, Darien almost changed his mind. Still, he knew that he had to say it. In the end, he threw all hesitation out the window. It was all or nothing.

"Well, was _he_ drunk?" Now Serena's body felt like it was shrinking away from him, as if the two of them were magnets with the same polarity pushing each other away. The feeling was terrible, and Darien instantly regretted saying what he had. Serena pulled away from him completely and looked up at him. When Darien saw her eyes, he felt as if somebody had literally stabbed him with daggers. Her eyes carried with them a look of anger and sadness, but most importantly, hatred.

"What are you getting at?" She demanded. Darien swallowed and opened his mouth to speak.

"I-I w-was just…"

"Stop right there," She said. He closed him mouth. "Are you implying that he took advantage of her? That he got her drink on purpose? That he RAPED her?" Darien tried his best to gather himself.

"Listen, I'm just saying…"

"What's your end game Darien?" Serena stood up from her place on his couch. "I mean you tell me that you like me. No, you tell me that you LOVE me. You cook for me, you're nice to me…! Why? Because you think I'm easy or something because I'm suffering? So you come in and take advantage of a girl in mourning? You even go as far as getting me to feel something for you. You're sick!" Tears were literally pouring from her eyes at that point, and Darien could do nothing but stare at her wide-eyed. Darien stood up himself, and Serena cowered back in fear. It was that action which finally broke him. At once, he felt all his strength escape his body.

"Stay away from me," she demanded. She quickly turned around and stormed out of the apartment. Darien fall backwards on to the couch behind him. Unlike the last time Serena stormed out of the apartment, this time she slammed the door behind her so hard that Darien was able to feel the vibration of it travel through him like a shockwave.

As Darien stared as the closed door, he didn't realize the tears beginning to stream down his face.

* * *

Serena ran down the sidewalk with tears streaming down her face. She didn't care if anybody saw. All she wanted to do was run away; to get away from everything. It was a mistake coming back, she thought. Even through her sadness and her tears, she couldn't get Darien's face out of her head. The thought of him only made her cry more. She hated him. Yet, she knew that she didn't hate him, and that's what made her the most upset.

She didn't know how wrong she ran for before she had to stop for a combination of a strong burning in both her chest and her legs. She leaned forward and placed her hands on her knees, and spent several moments gasping for air. Her husband had always told her that she ought to get exercise. Serena couldn't help but snicker at the thought. Maybe he was right.

After a few moments, she was finally able to breath normal again, though there was still a burning sensation in her chest, which caused her to cough. At last, Serena stood up straight and wiped the rest of the wetness from her eyes. After, she looked up and felt a sense of relief. In front of her was the Crown Café and Barcade. Serena pulled her phone out of her pocket and hit the button on the side to turn on the screen.

She had two missed calls from Darien. Serena grimaced and slid the notification away with her thumb. She had taken out her phone to look at the time. It was a few minutes past two, and The Crown would be serving alcohol at this time of the day. Serena never felt a greater urge to drink in her life until that moment. She walked across the street and into The Crown for the second time that day.

Unlike the time she had entered The Crown that morning, this time, she swung to her right upon entering. Walking through the wooden archway, she was immediately greeted by the lights and sounds of the classic arcade games. Any other time, she would had been completely mesmerized by it (Serena was always a sucker for old arcade games), but this time, only one thing caught her interest: the wrap-around bar.

The stools around the bar were mostly unoccupied, sans two young men who were conversing over on the far end. Serena sat down on one of the stools on the complete opposite side of the bar. She doubted that the men would be approach her inn the middle of the day, but she still wanted to avoid any possible confrontation nevertheless. It only took a minute or two for the bartender come over. When Serena saw him, she froze.

"Hey Serena, how are you doing?" the young man asked. He was tall with dirty-blonde hair and dark, green eyes. He was also her late husband's best friend.

"Andrew?" she more stated than asked. "Wh-what are you doing here?" Andrew looked at her with a confused look on his face.

"My folks run this place, Serena. I've literally been here my entire life." Serena felt a blush appear on her cheeks. Between being away from New York for so long and her husband's passing, she had completely forgotten that Andrew's family were the sole proprietors of Crown Café and Barcade.

"Sorry," Serena said. "My brain is just mush right now." Andrew gave her a sad smile and Serena felt the stinging of tears in her eyes. She quickly willed them away.

"What can I get for you?" Andrew asked. He then grinned, "Let me guess? Sauvignon Blanc, right?" Serena actually felt flattered for a moment that he remembered. It had been many years since she and the girls went out for drinks at The Crown, and it was very rare that Andrew was the one manning the bar. However, she wasn't feeling wine that afternoon; she wanted – no, needed – something stronger.

"Actually," Serena started, hesitantly, "I'll take a Long Island Iced Tea." Andrew looked taken back.

"Hey, you sure? That's a lot of liquor."

"Yeah, positive. I won't tell you why, but I need it. Make it a big one too." Andrew looked at Serena with a worried look on his face, but when he noticed her eyes – begging and desperate – he gave in and began preparing her drink. As she waiting, Serena noticed a young couple walk in and sit down several seats away from her. They both appeared to be in their mid-20's. The girl was short and cute, with long brown hair and deep brown eyes. She had a few freckles surrounding the bridge of her nose. The boy was fairly tall and slim, with short black hair and dark eyes. They were definitely a handsome couple.

"Here you go," Andrew said, breaking Serena away from her thoughts. He placed the pint-sized glass of almost pure liquor in front of her. Serena pulled out her wallet and began opening it when Andrew placed his hand over hers. She looked up at him and he only shook his head.

"This one's on me," he said.

"You sure? It's really not…"

"Of course Serena. Of course it is." Serena mumbled a thanks and put away her wallet. She took her first sip as she watched Andrew move over to the couple whom had just sat down. Serena had to hold back a cough when she took her first sip. It was strong. She took a second sip, then a third, with each sip going down easier than the last. Before she knew it, the glass was completely empty. She placed it down, rather loudly, onto the bar top. As if on signal, Andrew walked over.

"Whoa, you weren't kidding," he said while gesturing to the empty glass. Serena nodded. Her head already felt like it was beginning to float off her body, but she didn't mind. In fact, she welcomed the feeling.

"See? Told ya! Give me another." Serena let out a slight snicker. Andrew wanted to say no, but reluctantly nodded his head and took her glass away as he prepared her another. Serena looked over to her right at the young couple that had come in earlier. The boy was drinking a beer and the girl what seemed like a mixed drink. They were joking and laughing as they drank, and Serena felt a slight pang of hurt, though she didn't understand why.

Out of all the memories she had of her late husband, she could not recall one in which they shared a drink together. In fact, she could not recall one time in which she had even seen him have a single drink, including their wedding. Not one glass of wine; not one sip of champagne. Serena's thoughts trailed back to the story Mina had told her earlier that day.

'Taking shots?' Serena thought to herself. 'Never. He never drank anything, ever.' Andrew walked back over and placed another mixer glass of Long Island Iced Tea in front of her.

"This one's on the house too," he said. He leaned forward against the bar, coming closer to Serena. "Hey, are you okay?" Serena figured that Andrew would eventually ask that. She was known as a person who couldn't handle her alcohol, and therefore, she seldom – if ever – drank liquor. If Serena actually took the time to think back to the last time she had a mixed drink (or God forbid a straight shot), she would have to go back at least a good nine or ten years, back to her formative drinking days where she originally realized she couldn't handle her liquor in the slightest. In fact, it had become a sort of a running joke amongst her friends and most people who knew her.

"I've been better," Serena said, surprising herself.

"Listen, if there's anything you ever need to talk about, or if you just want somebody to vent you, I'm here anytime you need." Serena could see inn his eyes that he was sincere and he smiled. In the months that passed since he passed on, she had gotten used to seeing looks of pity in people's faces. To actually see another person who legitimately seemed to care about her situation and not just offering their condolences because it's what they are "expected" to do was refreshing. Then again, Andrew was always a good guy.

"I appr-apicate it," Serena said. She laughed at her blatant mispronunciation of the word and laughed. Since she had finished the first drink so quickly, she had not felt any effect whatsoever from the alcohol, but at that moment, it hit her like a tsunami. The slight burning sensation in her head was warm and equally welcoming. It was what she had gone to The Crown to achieve, and feeling it was like reconnecting with an old friend.

"Sho tell me," she said. "Actally, I have a kestion!" Andrew looked at her with an expression that looked like a mixture of worry and amusement. "You've known Chris longer than me. He evver drink? Like, booooze?" She snickered at her emphasis on the "ooo".

"That's kind of a weird question," He said. "Why?"

"Don't worry 'bout it. Just tell me." Andrew stared at her for a moment before diverting his eyes to the wall, losing himself in thought. He stayed like that for a moment, and Serena took that time to gulp down the rest of her drink, which had been a good three-quarters the way full. Andrew turned back to her.

"Now that you mention it, not really. Actually, he was always sort of against it. I remember we used to tease him some for it and he used to get so mad. After that, we really never brought it up to him ever again." He looked like he was about to say more, but then his eyes diverted to her now-empty glass.

"Serena, you should really be careful. Everyone knows you can't really handle your liquor."

"Oh shut it," she snapped back playfully and picked up her drink, forgetting that she had already finished it. "One more. I promise!" Andrew looked at her and sighed in defeat. At that moment, a small group of guys walked inn and sat down at the bar.

"I'll be right back," Andrew said. "Don't go anywhere." He then walked over to greet the bar's newest patrons. Serena sighed and leaned back in her stool, causing it to balance on its rear legs, as she compensated by resting her feet against the bar itself. She heard the sound of talking to her right and turned to look at the couple several seats away from her; the ones who had come in earlier.

"Hey, you're drinking that way too fast," the man said.

"So what?" the girl replied with a teasing shrug.

"So I don't want to have to deal with you being drunk later."

"Oh shut it! I'm fine." The man stood up so abruptly that he almost knocked the stool over He grabbed her arm and forcefully pulled her to her feet.

"Hey, let go of me, you jerk!" the girl snapped.

"No, we're going." She girl attempted to pull her arm away, but he only tightened his grasp. The man turned to Andrew, who looked like he was about to say something, and threw a small wad of bills into the table.

"Sorry about her," the man said before leading the girl out of the arcade. Serena looked on, dumbfounded. She attempted to straighten her chair as to stand up in defense of the girl, but in doing so, only caused her stool to fall backwards completely, taking her with it.

* * *

"You smell like a God damn liquor store," the man snapped. Serena had just walked in through the front door, and her husband was waiting for her on the couch.

"Huh?" she asked him. He stood up and walked over to her.

"What? You're so fucking drunk you can't even understand English anymore? I said you. Smell. Like. A. God. Damned. Liquor. Store! Christ, take that wax out of your ears." Serena laughed drunkenly.

"Cut it out, Chris. I just had a few drinks *hiccup*." She burst out laughing. He pushed her against the door, causing all the air to escape from her lungs.

"What was that? Just a few? You come in here stinking of a frickin' crocked whore and you tell me you had 'just a few'?" Serena looked at him disgust and shoved him away.

"Cut it out! Yur bein' sush a dick!" His eyes filled with a fire she had never seen before and grabbed her by the neck. He then proceeded to push her to the ground with all the force he could muster, and in her inebriated state, was unable to resist. She felt her feet leave the ground and for a split-second, experienced a strong sensation of weightlessness before the back of her head suddenlt made contact with the ground. She browned out at that moment, and when she came to, he was on top of her, pinning her shoulders to the ground.

"Ch-Chris! "Wh-what the hell are you…"

In her mind, she tried to struggle, but her limbs wouldn't budge. If she had been sober, she would had been panicking at that moment, but she was far from being sober. Earlier that night, she had gone out with a few girlfriends to a get-together at a local bar to celebrate one of them getting engaged. She had drank a little more than originally intended, but they had a designated driver, and had been dropped off by her before walking into the house. It was her first time going out for drinks since she had left New York.

"If you're going to act like a drunk whore, then you'll be treated like a drunk whore," he said.

* * *

Serena opened her eyes with a gasp. Her face was soaked with a mixture of sweat and tears, and she could vaguely make out a dull pain in the back of her head. Her vision was blurry, but directly ahead of her – standing over her – was a face she could not make out, except for its raven-black hair and deep, dark eyes.

"…S…na…ere….a…S…rena…"

The tears fell freely down Serena's face and she smiled.

"Ch-chris? You're alive?" Almost immediately, the world around her began to darken once again, and soon after, everything went black.

* * *

 _So that's the end of Chapter Six. Hope you are looking forward to the next chapter, where I begin to wrap things up. Also, I'm working on a new story which will be a high school comedy/slife-of-life. Basically the exact opposite of this story, lol._


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